Dine Out: After so-so start, an Italian classic in Providence pleases

Thursday

Feb 20, 2014 at 8:31 AMFeb 20, 2014 at 8:38 AM

There are many wonderful restaurants on SouthCoast, and my wife and I have been to many of them. But this past Valentine's Day — and the first day of our shared vacation together — we decided that a trip to Federal Hill in Providence for a special lunch would be a fun change of pace.

Jonathan Comey

There are many wonderful restaurants on SouthCoast, and my wife and I have been to many of them.

But this past Valentine's Day — and the first day of our shared vacation together — we decided that a trip to Federal Hill in Providence for a special lunch would be a fun change of pace.

We were right. In addition to a romantic stroll up and down Atwells Avenue in the slush that lingered between snowstorms, we enjoyed an old-school meal at one of the most old-school restaurants on that strip — Angelo's, founded in 1924.

Laurie and I spend much of our relaxation time together watching Food Network, which means plenty of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," with the perpetually shouting (and amusing) Guy Fieri. We've been to a couple of Fieri's featured New England stops, and the website flavortownusa.com offers a map with all of them.

That landed me at Angelo's, which is neither a drive-in, a dive or a diner, but was certainly charming and photogenic.

We were shown to our booth — one of only a couple available at 1:30 on a Friday — by a kindly older gentleman who spoke softly and had a twinkle in his eye. When he left us, he gave me a little pat on the shoulder that seemed to say: "Enjoy your time here with this special lady, young squire." At least that's how I took it; Angelo's seems like that type of place.

The room had a special feel — it has undergone a remodel, but retains a classic warmth that has helped it survive for nine decades. The main dining room has high ceilings, and a glance up showed train tracks running the perimeter of the large main dining room; for a quarter you can send the model replicas around for a spin. There are tributes to the restaurant's past everywhere, from family pictures to the original 1924 menu — which featured every meat known to humankind, all for under 50 cents.

Our server, Chris, was friendly and knowledgeable, and she was training a new recruit who had the same type of winning personality. Every conversation we overheard was buzzing with the type of easy kinship that ensures return business.

I will say, though, that there was a moment where we thought maybe ambience was all Angelo's had to offer; the meal didn't get off to a great start food-wise.

We ordered a Diet Coke ($2.29) and a glass of water, and Chris dropped off a small basket of basic Italian bread that came with little tubs of Promise spread — definitely nothing special.

We ordered a small house salad ($3.50), which, when it arrived, was as basic a salad as you could imagine — unappealing iceberg lettuce, a tomato (maybe an olive?) and a half-filled cuplet of basic house dressing.

"Wow, that is pretty lame," said Laurie, a salad fan.

"Can I quote you on that?" I asked.

"Well, I don't think you should "»"

"Listen, lady, you knew what you were getting into when you married a serious journalist. You should have told me we were off the record here!"

Ah, romantic repartee. Keeps a marriage young!

Putting the salad behind us, we tried the meatballs and french fries ($5.25), an appetizer from the classic Angelo's menu that Guy Fieri tried on his visit — they were developed during the Great Depression, to try and fill up hungry (and poor) customers.

Unfortunately, the meatballs were a letdown — I don't know if they're pre-fabricated, or just not my style, but they were your basic small, spongy meatball that you can get anywhere. The concept was great — meatballs, sauce and crispy fries work well together — but they weren't really delicious.

"Hmm," Laurie said, giving me a look.

"Yeah," I said, giving her a look.

Ah, unspoken talk. Keeps a marriage young!

Fortunately, Angelo's ensured a good review (and a return visit) with two of the best Italian entrees we've had in a long time.

I was eyeing the Atwells sirloin ($12.99), a hand-cut steak served with house-made garlic butter and a side, but Laurie was weighing the merits of chicken parmesan ($11.99, $7 for lunch size) and grilled veggie lasagna ($10.99, $6.49) and I suggested we just get both in lunch size and split them.

Good call. The chicken parm was very good, just the way we both like it — the breast pounded flat, breaded and cooked to a crispy golden brown, with tasty house "gravy" and melted cheese on top. Chris gave us the option of spaghetti, penne or homemade noodles, and we chose the homemade, wondering aloud why anyone would choose anything else. It was cooked perfectly, and notably better than anything you get at the grocery store. The lunch portion was plenty big enough for us, and we ended up taking some home.

But the veggie lasagna was the real star. As a dish, it's generally pretty unloved, the default "vegetarian" choice that usually seems to be haphazard and so-so, but Angelo's does it right. The big slab featured fresh grilled zucchini, carrots, eggplant and summer squash, with ricotta and a delicious sweet veggie sauce.

I don't think I've ever truly enjoyed a veggie lasagna in my life; this was one worth driving 45 minutes to get. I considered asking the lasagna to be my valentine, but I felt that Laurie might take offense.

Other dinner options include pasta aglio olio ($8.99), a spaghetti with oil and cheese classic, cavati Rosalie ($12.55), which is cavatelli and diced eggplant in pink vodka sauce, and many daily specials. Angelo's also offers subs ($5.70-$8.99), including tripe if you're so inclined.

We were pretty stuffed, but Chris rattled off an impressive list of desserts and so we splurged on a delicious, crunchy mini cannoli ($1.99) and a piece of limoncello cake ($5.99) that was also a winner. I added a cup of coffee ($1.99) that wasn't exactly necessary but was quite good.

Our bill came to $37.27, which we rounded up to $50 with a generous tip in recognition of the good service and good vibes we felt.

Maybe we'll make Angelo's a Valentine's Day tradition — after all, they know a thing or two about keeping the love alive for a long, long time.

Dine Out's reviewer visits restaurants unannounced and at his or her discretion. The Standard-Times pays for the meals reviewed. The reviews merely reflect one diner's experience. Ratings range from 1 to 5 stars.

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